EFI to feature industry-leading print products at Fespa

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Press release from the issuing company

Munich, Germany - EFI today announced that it will be displaying its most advanced UV printers in stand B1/120 at Fespa 2010, 22-26 June (Munich, Germany). This will include the VUTEk GS3200 with the new MediaMaster automatic media handling system, the GS5000r, the high-productivity QS3250r UV roll-to-roll superwide printer, the versatile Rastek T1000 and the H650 wide-format UV printers, and the Jetrion 4830 digital label press. EFI will also feature Pace print management system, Digital StoreFront web-to-print solutions and Web Control Center for remote proofing.

"We have been exhibiting at Fespa for 15 years and EFI continues its commitment of bringing award winning end-to-end solutions to its attendees. As technology improves, industry leaders must deliver offerings that can harness turn-key solutions and provide new revenue opportunities. We look forward to showing our enhanced portfolio to our worldwide customers, prospects and partners in Germany this year," said EFI president, Fred Rosenzweig.

"We have been working with the new GS5000r for a few weeks now and we are amazed by the truly impressive print quality we can get from a 5-meter printer," said Thomas Ellmer, director at Ellmer GmbH in Bad Salzuflen, Germany. "The new UV inks are, in comparison to UV inks offered by other vendors, a big step forward toward a more pleasant working environment. Our customers also appreciate the fact that prints delivered to them are nearly without any odor."

EFI's demonstrates proven quality and high productivity of VUTEk GS3200With dozens of units installed already since its first launch at Fespa 2009, the VUTEk GS3200 flatbed and roll-to-roll hybrid UV printer from EFI delivers photorealistic quality and superwide speed, and delivers innovative applications that expand the reach of superwide into new industries. It extends capabilities by offering a wider range of applications for exhibition graphics, fine art, photographic reproduction and Point-of-Purchase displays.

The VUTEk GS3200 comes with 1000 dpi for high-precision quality and 12-picolitre droplet technology for all colors, including white. The printer also offers advanced three-layer white ink capabilities for printing exceptional quality on a wider range of materials.

"Not being restricted to white material is a tremendous advantage (of the GS3200)," said Andy Williams, managing director of Andesign (Sutton Coldfield, UK). "The good opacity of the white is enhanced by the way it can be incorporated into the workflow, making it a simple addition to the existing colors and enabling greater creativity in designs and how they can be implemented in a digitally printed format."

VUTEk MediaMaster shown for the first time in EuropeIntroduced in the United States at ISA International Sign Expo in April 2010, EFI's VUTEk MediaMaster will make its European debut at Fespa. It will be featured with the GS3200. The MediaMaster is a fully-automated material handling system that drives the economics of superwide printing even further for greater profitability. Equipped to handle full-size 1.5 x 3 meter boards at up to 50 beds per hour and also master as many as 3-up smaller boards across the width of the printer, for over 150 boards per hour with precision, enabling the material handling system's hands-free productivity that optimizes production time.

The MediaMaster system also lowers overhead costs by allowing one operator to efficiently run two VUTEk printers simultaneously, or focus on maximizing the output capabilities of the GS3200 in high-speed modes. The easy cart system streamlines the print-to-finishing workflow, allowing the operator to wheel the printed product to a cut or shipping station. The material handling system enables customers to fully utilize the maximum speed of the GS3200, and will help drive the analog to digital transition in the screen print market where productivity is crucial.

High-productivity VUTEk QS3250rThe VUTEk QS3250r is the second-generation roll-to-roll UV-curing superwide printer from EFI to combine High-Definition Print (HDP) capability and high production speeds in a single UV roll-to-roll device. It is the ideal printer for sign shops and commercial printers looking to upgrade to UV output with enhanced productivity, quality and versatility.

Rastek T1000 makes European Debut at Fespa 2010EFI's new Rastek T1000 wide-format printer is shown for the first time in Europe. This new flatbed printer offers class-leading print speed, including white running the same speed as CMYK – all with stunning 8-level greyscale, up to 1200 dpi print quality. With a stationary vacuum table and retractable media registration pins, it has the versatility to handle a wide range of rigid media quickly and easily.

The Rastek H650 wide-format UV hybrid flatbed printer from EFI delivers best-in-class image quality at an affordable price. It is the perfect choice for production and print shop environments where quick service, superior image quality and smaller footprints are the keys to customer satisfaction and increasing profit. The printer expands businesses' portfolios and profits with its four color and optional white ink support for spot color and under and overprinting. The Rastek H650 can handle materials up to 165 cm wide and 4.5 cm thick.

Jetrion 4830 Demonstrates Next-Generation Label PrintingThe new award-winning Jetrion 4830 UV Inkjet System from EFI offers wider web widths and faster linear speeds to increase label printing throughput more than twofold over the company's market-leading Jetrion 4000. The Jetrion 4830 prints 21 cm wide, enabling two-up 10 cm labels. Its wider print zone lets label converters efficiently take on more print jobs. With its higher speed print mode of greater than 36.6 meters per minute, the system increases productivity significantly. The new Jetrion also has an optional white printing station with the most opaque digital white print available.

Web Control Center Shows Remote ProofingEFI will also show Web Control Center, a web-based application that connects, monitors and controls proofing and printing at all remote sites in a production workflow. Web Control uses JDF communications to interact with Fiery RIP solutions (EFI Colorproof XF and Fiery XF v4.0) at any location via EFI proven web hosting capabilities. Web Control Center uses EFI technology to combine color measurement, distribution and communications, resulting in real-time accurate data combined with two-way color management communications. The system is designed to provide the most efficient and flexible way of managing and controlling remote sites, to streamline and automate the production workflow, and to significantly reduce job turnaround time and costs.

EFI VUTEk Inks StationEFI's VUTEk UV curable inks provide the highest quality of color on a variety of flexible and rigid media substrates. These inks reduce printer downtime by virtually eliminating print head clogging. EFI's UV inks contain up to 50 percent monomers and oligomers that are naturally derived from renewable resources, such as plants or biomass, significantly lessening their impact on the environment. These inks contain virtually no VOCs and do not contain heavy metals, such as antimony, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury and selenium.

As part of the total solutions approach, EFI's VUTEk support team also tailors the ink to ensure precise color quality every time using fully optimized printer settings and color profiles.

EFI Features End-to-End Integrated Workflow SolutionsEFI will be demonstrating integrated digital workflow solutions from job acquisition and management to preparation and production. Included in the workflows will be the award-winning EFI Digital StoreFront web-to-print solution, the integrated, browser-based EFI Pace Print MIS solution and the professional-level RIP, Fiery XF with the Cut Server option for efficient color management and finishing.

"According to Pace's activity-based method every transaction has a cost price. For example, setting up a new roll on the machine has a certain cost. There is nothing spectacular about this so far, but what's different is that the software also takes account of the weight of the roll. In fact, you cannot set up a 100 kg roll alone, so there is an additional wage cost for a second person. It is quite a complex method, but much more precise. In addition, Pace naturally has everything, such as JDF support, that a modern MIS system has to fulfil. We are still in the start-up phase at present, but just like with our other VUTEk solutions it looks very promising," explains Christian Pelegrie of Pelegrie in Hoboken, Belgium.

"Our VUTEk, Rastek and Jetrion printing systems help customers all over the world transition to UV printing and tap into more profitable and niche markets with new applications," said Rosenzweig. "In addition to having the ability to select print output resolution and speed capabilities, customers need new ways to automate operations, by using products like our new MediaMaster for operational savings. The Rastek T1000 UV flatbed printer is another example of EFI continuing to innovate, as we continue to expand our hardware, ink and software portfolio. At the show, our customers will have a great opportunity to see EFI Pace and Digital Storefront, both of which offer unlimited options for external connectivity with the customer, and streamline internal operations. Overall, EFI provides the product portfolio for our customers to profitably transition from analog to digital."